William Tilden (nicknamed Big Bill) was born today, February 10, in 1893. He was an American tennis player. He is often considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
Tilden was the World No. 1 player for six years from 1920 through 1925. He won 15 Major singles titles including 10 Grand Slam events, one World Hard Court Championships and four Pro Slam tournaments. He was the first American to win Wimbledon in 1920. He also won a record seven U.S. Championships titles (shared with Richard Sears and Bill Larned).
Tilden dominated the world of international tennis in the first half of the 1920s, and during his 18-year amateur period of 1912–29, won 138 of 192 tournaments. He owns a number of all-time tennis achievements including a career match winning record and a career winning percentage at the U.S. National Championships.
Tilden dominated the world of international tennis in the first half of the 1920s, and during his 18-year amateur period of 1912–29, won 138 of 192 tournaments. He owns a number of all-time tennis achievements including a career match winning record and a career winning percentage at the U.S. National Championships.
At the 1929 U.S. National Championships Tilden became the first player to reach 10 finals at a single Grand Slam event. His 10 finals at a grand slam tournament remained a record until 2017, when Roger Federer reached his eleventh Wimbledon final.
Tilden, who was frequently at odds with the rigid United States Lawn Tennis Association about his amateur status and income derived from newspaper articles, won his last major title in 1930 at Wimbledon aged 37. He turned professional on the last day of that year and toured with a handful of other professionals for the next 15 years.
Tilden was arrested in November 1946 on Sunset Boulevard by the Beverly Hills police and charged with a misdemeanor ("contributing to the delinquency of a minor") for soliciting an underage male, a 14-year-old boy with whom he was having sex in a moving vehicle. Tilden did not carry his glasses with him and signed a confession without reading it. He was sentenced to a year in prison, but served 7½ months. His 5-year parole conditions were so strict they virtually erased all his income from private lessons.
Tilden was arrested in November 1946 on Sunset Boulevard by the Beverly Hills police and charged with a misdemeanor ("contributing to the delinquency of a minor") for soliciting an underage male, a 14-year-old boy with whom he was having sex in a moving vehicle. Tilden did not carry his glasses with him and signed a confession without reading it. He was sentenced to a year in prison, but served 7½ months. His 5-year parole conditions were so strict they virtually erased all his income from private lessons.
He was arrested again in January 1949, after picking up a 16-year-old hitchhiker who remained anonymous until years later, when he filed a lawsuit claiming he had suffered severe mental, physical, and emotional damage from the encounter. The judge sentenced Tilden to a year on probation violation and let the punishment for the charge run concurrently. Tilden served 10 months. In both cases, apparently, he sincerely believed that his celebrity and his longtime friendship with Hollywood names such as Charlie Chaplin were enough to keep him from jail. He therefore defended himself in court in both cases in a far less than vigorous fashion.
After his incarceration, he was increasingly shunned by the tennis and Hollywood world. He was unable to give lessons at most clubs, and even on public courts he had fewer clients. At one point, he was invited to play at a prestigious professional tournament being held at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel; at the last moment, he was told that he could not participate. Chaplin allowed Tilden to use his private court for lessons to help him after the run of legal and financial problems.
According to contemporary George Lott, a player and later tennis coach at DePaul University, and authoritative biographer Frank Deford, Tilden never made advances to players, whether other adults or his pupils. Art Anderson of Burbank, who took lessons from Tilden from the age of 11 and remained a lifelong loyal friend, reported that Tilden never made advances toward him. “
Although Tilden had been born to wealth, and earned large sums of money during his long career, particularly in his early years on the pro tour, he spent it lavishly, keeping a suite at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City. Much of his income went toward financing Broadway shows that he wrote, produced, and starred in. The last part of his life was spent quietly and away from his family, occasionally participating in celebrity tennis matches.
According to contemporary George Lott, a player and later tennis coach at DePaul University, and authoritative biographer Frank Deford, Tilden never made advances to players, whether other adults or his pupils. Art Anderson of Burbank, who took lessons from Tilden from the age of 11 and remained a lifelong loyal friend, reported that Tilden never made advances toward him. “
Although Tilden had been born to wealth, and earned large sums of money during his long career, particularly in his early years on the pro tour, he spent it lavishly, keeping a suite at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City. Much of his income went toward financing Broadway shows that he wrote, produced, and starred in. The last part of his life was spent quietly and away from his family, occasionally participating in celebrity tennis matches.
He died in his apartment in Los Angeles, California. He was preparing to leave for the United States Professional Championship tournament in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1953 when he died from heart complications at age 60.
No comments:
Post a Comment